Destiny

This kid is destined for big things. Jury is still out on whether he will use his powers for evil or good. :)

R's Bachelorette Weekend

I have been meaning to write this post for a while. Time has not been my friend lately. So after months of long distance planning, Rosie's bachelorette weekend finally came to fruition in late May. Her bridesmaids live around the world, so it was a little tricky working out the details, but between skyping to Italy, calls to California and Chicago, we made it work!

The bachelorette was a two day affair. Saturday being the Bachelorette party and Sunday afternoon being the bridal shower. I realize that may not be the best of circumstances considering how much trouble one can get themselves into on the Bachelorette night, but folks were flying in for the affair, so it was best to work both activities into one weekend so the majority of the bridal party could participate.

Saturday was a jam packed day. It started with Amy and I getting up early and running around like chickens with our heads cut off making sure everything would be perfect for Miss Rosie. Things like the gift boxes filled with lip gloss, glitter nail polish and the like.



At two o'clock the girls swang by to hang out at the hotel suite at the James. Seriously. Could there be a more perfect hotel for Rosie? (her husband's name is James). We sipped on champagne and wine, hired a make-up artist to make us look pretty, and had the whole day captured by Krysta, who was such a trooper.











We played silly games, we threw on youtube to show Rosie why we had gotten her a cowbell...She had never seen this Saturday Night Live skit. The horror.



It rained the whole weekend. But you don't get a second opportunity to have someone like Krysta follow you around for the whole day. And it isn't very often that this group of girls gets together, so we went out in the rain...In the feezing rain I may add...I had bought this yellow and white striped Anthropology dress for the occasion. Believe me, this dress wasn't the most practical of choices. Sometimes one must suffer for the greater good.

In the end, I am glad we ventured into the rain, I think some of the best pictures were taken outside.













We piled into a cab, headed back to the suite, changed and toasted the bride to be. Rosie handed out gifts to all the girls. Necklaces with champagne diamonds.





All pictures taken by Krysta Manthe

Then it was off to Maude's for late night dinner and drinks. That is as far as I made it. I lasted until midnight. I turn into a pumpkin after that point. Seriously though, I started to fill very ill at dinner and had to cab it home and curl up in the fetal position in the hotel room. I vaguely remember hearing Rosie and Amy's voices in the early morning...

The next day was a little rough, but it was all made better by the best food EVER that was served at R's bridal shower. More to come on that later...

Fall Fashion

I know that we are in the throws of summer, and I do appreciate all the sunny weather we have been getting, but I have a weak spot for fall clothes. The sweaters, the blazers, the jackets...Oh sweet lord. The jackets.

I love this blazer. LOVE. I could wear this to work and going out for drinks. Same with the dress below. Both from the Proenza Schouler 2011 fall collection. Adore the lace up leather boots with the dress.





And speaking of leather boots, take a look at these bad boys. The Italians do know how to make some mighty fine leather boots. These boots are from a company called Guidi.



I love fashion, however, I am not big on the actual shopping part anymore. I don't have the patience to roam amongst the crowds of people, waiting for a changing room with a three year old in tow.....So, I just call Rosie. She sends me pictures of what she thinks I would like (she gets it right 99.99% of the time), I choose, and then she ships it off to me. No muss, no fuss.

Here are a few things that she has sent that have caught my eye.

Elizabeth & James jacket



Valentino Red Collection dress



I have no idea where I would wear the leather and chiffon black dress (definitely not work), but I would love to rock that thing out.

Scrapbooking Schtuff - Take Six

Lately, I have been having a good time hauling my supplies outside on the deck and have been scrapbooking the weekend away with the pugs at my feet and Rowan running around the backyard spraying everything he can with the power hose (another story for another time). Love being able to scrapbook outside in nice weather.

I took photographs of my more recent creations. Studio Calico's Paper Moon has to be one of my favourite kits to date. It screams boy to me. The yellow, blue and orange colours...so good. The October Afternoon. I took an inventory of what manufacturing company that I use the most when scrapbooking. OA won. Never seem to have much of it left when it is all said and done. The kit is sold out, but isn't a beauty?



Rowan as Rambo - I thought I would be a masochist and hand stitch the circles on the yellow American Crafts paper. That was a part time job in itself. Then I dipped into October Afternoon's Rocket Age to spice things up. I love that blue paper. And you won't be able tell in this picture, but I also used Maya Road Iridescent Pearl Mist in specific areas of the layout.



Next we have I love your smile. When i get a picture that I really love, I print it big and just do minimal embellishment work and leave it alone. It's all about the picture in this case. Love the hand stitched Amy Tan tag. Love the SC Wood Veneer.



Magic - I found the Roald Dahl quote on pinterest. I have a folder of inspirational items that I keep from pinterest. I decided to actually use one for a layout. Note to Self: Need to do more of this.



Rockstar - This is one of those pages that came to together in ten minutes start to finish. Again with the Rocket Age line. I have a soft spot for stars.



Watermelon Face - This one is actually a two pager with the title and the journaling on the page that isn't shown here.



Last one...just because I rarely have the opportunity to use anything remotely girly...

Summer Reading List

Trying my best to spend less time on the computer and more time doing....well...anything else. The ten hours a day I spend working on one should be enough. So in the spirit of spending less time in front of the computer screen, here's my summer reading list.

The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand
The Picture of Dorian Grey - Oscar Wilde
The Giving Tree - Shel Silverstein
Glass Castle - Jeannette Walls
Cutting for Stone - Abraham Verghese
In the Garden of Beasts - Erik Larson